Product Description

As a schoolboy in Dover, David Elleray's ambition was to referee at the football World Cup finals: at the age of 13 he started on that road by becoming the youngest person ever to referee in an official capacity. Now one of the most recognisable figures in football, he retires from full-time refereeing at the end of the present season. The last of the amateur refs in the top-flight and no stranger to controversy, he is a household name to readers of both tabloids and broadsheets and without a doubt the highest profile British referee in the world game. This highly entertaining and revealing memoir tells of his involvement at the highest level of the national and international game over four decades. Intelligent and insightful, it is a story of ambition, achievement and incident covering a career that has taken him all over the world from Yeltsin's Kremlin to the biggest match in Brazilian domestic football, to Wembley Cup Finals, to on and off-field confrontations with some of the game's biggest names (Roy Keane, Vinnie Jones), to death threats and police protection.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #215363 in Books
• Published on: 2004-08-12
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 320 pages

About the Author
Born in 1954, David Elleray became a Football League referee in 1986. He is a house master at Harrow School.

Customer Reviews

An excellent insight into the world of a top class referee.
David Elleray is a particularly interesting character, combining the world of top class refereeing with that of a house master at the English public school Harrow.
The book begins with David's childhood, describing how he turned to refereeing after finding that he was not as good at playing football as he wanted to be. This early part of the book shows David to be like any football obsessed youngster, and there is an amusing anicdote of how the Football Association refused to send David any more data requests, because he had already made so many.
The book then proceeds through Davids career describing his rise through the rank of referee's with numerous interesting anicdotes along the way. What is particularly revealing is both Davids love for football, and his devotion to his refereeing. A highlight of the book is David's description of the day he refereed the FA cup final in 1994. It is striking that ten years later David is still haunted by what he considers to be a poor decision he made on that day.
The book concludes with some interesting insights on some of the players and managers that David encountered during his time as a referee. David points out which players he found particularly easy or difficult to referee and some of encounteres he had with various managers.
In the modern game it seems to be the new vogue to criticise the performance of a referee, and as David says: Bad refereeing performances are remembered, while good performances are forgotten. It is hoped that those people that are quick to criticise referees read this book, as it provides a phenominal insight into what it takes to be a top class referee.
Highly recommended

A wonderful insight into PL and International football
This book is a must for anyone who wants a unique perspective into top flight football for the last 20 years. The world of refereeing is a mystery to most fans and this book opened my eyes into the behind the scenes life of Britain's top referee,particularly his interaction with the best players in the world - Henry, Beckham, Keane,Ronaldo etc... He is honest about his errors and I have gained a great understanding of what goes on in the mind of a referee and how he copes with the pressures on and off the field. It is a fascinating book - very highly recommended.

Man in the Middle
Having eagerly awaited the release of this book, I was delighted to receive it and start reading.
Its witty, enlightning and allows the reader a great insight into not only the world of football and a top referee but also of a Harrow School master.
A great read, it gets a top rating from me!